Organic Car Parking

Phil & Geof - A Grain Of Truth, originally uploaded by Colonel Blink.

One of the stalls at a farmers market organised by the Green Grocers on Earlham Road in Norwich. The Green Grocers is a wonderful shop and amazingly for this kind of shop in Norwich the prices charged are reasonable.(Not Supermarket prices admittedly but comparable to corner shop rather than costly delicatessen)

The shop is great and groovy; it is the customers that are a problem. After looking at the farmers market I slipped into the shop to buy some tomatoes. While I was in there someone decided to park in one of the bays outside the shop. Fair enough that is what the parking places are for. Unfortunately they decided to reverse their urban Range Rover into the bay with the result that the shop was pumped full with diesel exhaust fumes.

It is an irony of our times that if someone walked into the shop smoking, modern etiquette would allow us to scream at them to put the cigarette out but we are so in thrall to the car that although Car exhaust fumes are far more injurious to health than secondary smoking no one says a word of complaint. Furthermore the effects of exhaust fumes are more immediate; just ask anyone with asthma.

In the queue to pay for my tomatoes I find myself behind the driver of the car but I say nothing. I pay for my organic, newly carbon monoxide soused goods and leave. I will continue to shop at the Green Grocers because it is such an excellent shop selling wonderful and tasty products but I wish some of their customers were less self absorbed and thought of others.